Philly, East Coast Love, Found in Chicago!!!
It's been about 10 years since I've had a genuine Philly Cheesesteak. I never eat them in Chicago because it would be like trying to eat a Portillo's Beef in Philly -- completely pointless.
Much to my delight, yesterday I was finally proved that you CAN have a Philly Cheesesteak in Chicago, and it tastes exactly like they do in Philly. It was gooey, hot, thinly sliced, not too heavy on the "dip" and perfectly grilled onions and green peppers. Heaven on a hoagie roll! :D
It's from a place called Philly's Best started by two brothers from Philly who actually fly in their ingredients so that it is a Philly-produced cheesesteak assembled in Chicago. It tasted like home to me, and I was as happy as a kid on Christmas morning. At one point, Tony asked me, "Should I just stop talking to you while you're eating that? It's clearly an experience." Haha! :) Yes, admittedly, I get a little *excited* about food. :)
To top the experience off, THEY HAVE TASTYKAKES!!!!!! And even better was that their description of Tastykakes is, "What? People from Philly know exactly what these are." I nearly peed myself when I realized they have Butterscotch Krimpets, which I haven't eaten in about as long as it's been since I've had a cheesesteak, and which taste AWESOME dipped in MELK. I got two packs -- one for me, and one for Tony. Tony wasn't nearly as excited as me, and he seemed even less excited when I said, "The icing is so thick, you can usually peel it off." His response, "I take the icing off of everything. It's not good for you." Yea... you'll be eating this icing, at least the first time to try it. Sorry honey. Your abs can wait :)
The cheesesteak was SO HUGE that I had to REALLY stuff myself to eat it. I had no issues about that. The only thing that made me sad is that I was too full to eat my Butterscotch Krimpets. Instead, I gobbled them up this morning for breakfast with melk. Yum Yum. I wil make Tony eat his today or tomorrow as well :)
Dear Philly's Best,
Thanks for making a girl feel "home," by replicating a delicious and unique flavor. Also, thank you for bringing Tastykakes to Chicago. They sure as hell beat Twinkies and Fannie Mae.
Love,
An East Coast Girl.
Oh... and here's my happy prize:
Comments
OMFG!! I used to LOVELOVELOVE those butterscotch krimpets ... Oh, how I wish I could find them here in FL. Of course then I'd be 80000 lbs, but I'd be happy!
I know how you feel about the cheesesteak, but since I can't eat them, I can't share the joy. But I'm super-excited for you!
How's the foot?
It hurts. :(
WANT ME TO SEND YOU SOME BUTTERSCOTCH KRIMPETS?!
Tony didn't understand my glee. hehehe. i'm glad you do!!!
BTW, if we removed the cheese, you could eat them. They'd just be a steak sandwich, but i knew plenty of kids growing up who just liked them as "steak sandwiches" ! :)
Oh wow!
I miss tasteecakes.
In Orlando we have 2 places you can get "real" cheesesteaks (or Steak sandwiches if you need/prefer)
They have the Amarosa's rolls and junk shipped/flown/something in every day.
Love it! (very rarely as that's a heart attack on a plate, but still)
YES!
duh.
I was thinking "Carl's" first.. and then i was like "no, that's not right. it's not Carl's.. it's Paul's."
always go with your gut. i'm an idiot :)
THEIR ICE CREAM IS SO GOOD! :)
Yea but if you don't live IN philly or near this restaurant, then you might as well give up hope on the taste and stick with whatever other "beef" sandwich your area does well.
Like in Chicago, it's italian beef.. and there are many varieties, and they are delish.... but they don't taste like "home."
:)
Actually I'm probably just going to get a huge steak and fire up the grill.
Now I want to eat cheesesteak and hell if I know where to get something like that in stupid California. They probably have tofu-steak sandwiches here.... NOT THE SAME!!!!!!!
I am still drooling over the fact that they import Tastykakes. I may eat Tony's tonight. He has THREE in his package after all.. and does he really need them? After all, I have missed them so much! hehehehe.
Damnit. Discovering this place may rapidly deplete my bank account and expand my waistline at the same time.
Fuck.
Now if only I could find a local dispenser of genuine Lebanon Bologne..... :)
Don't go crazy now!
link
I know they ship their products, but for convenience sake, it would be awesome to find somewhere around here that carries their stuff.
And no, I haven't found dried beef here, either.
i guess living in the philly area we take this sorta stuff for granted. believe it or not there's a place closer to me on the other side of philly (NJ) that is better than what you can get in the city.